JOSEPH BOVINO, III, A MINOR, ETC., ET AL., APPELLANTS,
v.
METROPOLITAN DADE COUNTY, APPELLEE
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Joseph Bovino, a minor, and his father appealed a summary judgment dismissing their negligence action against Metropolitan Dade County for injuries suffered when Bovino was struck by another motorcycle rider on the county's undeveloped land being used as an unauthorized dirt track. The court affirmed the summary judgment, holding that the county owed no duty to a trespasser who was already aware of the dangerous condition.
The county owed no duty to Bovino because: (1) Bovino was a trespasser on the property; (2) Bovino was already possessed of knowledge of the dangerous condition (the unauthorized motorcycle racing); and (3) his injury resulted from the negligence of a third party and Bovino's own negligence, not from a defective condition of the property itself.
[1] A landowner owes a trespasser a duty to refrain from inflicting willful or wanton injury and to warn of known dangers not open to ordinary observation upon discovery of t…
[2] A landowner has no duty to warn a trespasser of a dangerous condition if the trespasser already possesses knowledge of that condition.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“The landowner's duty to a trespasser is to refrain from inflicting wilful or wanton injury upon him and upon discovery of his presence to warn him of known dangers not open to ordinary observation.”
Establishes the limited duty a landowner owes to trespassers under Florida law
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceMetropolitan Dade County owned an undeveloped tract of land across a canal from Bird Drive Park that was occasionally used by motorcycle riders as an …
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PER CURIAM.
Minor plaintiff, Joseph Bovino, and his father appeal a summary final judgment for the defendant landowner, Metropolitan Dade County, in this negligence action.
Dade County, defendant-appellee, is the owner of an undeveloped tract of land located across a canal from the county’s Bird Drive Park. The property in question consists of a rough dirt area with trees and shrubs being used on occasion by motorcycle riders as a motorcycle dirt track. Such use was not authorized by the county and on several occasions park employees gave warnings to the riders to stay off the premises. On the day in question, Joseph Bovino took his motorcycle to the track and along with other riders rode around for about two hours. He then parked the motorcycle on the outside of the track and began to walk across the track when he was struck by a motorcycle driven by Bobby Regula. As a result, Joseph received serious injuries. Joseph’s father on behalf of Joseph and himself filed the instant suit against Dade County for failure to exclude persons from using the area as a race track and/or to supervise such activities and/or to warn persons that such activities were not supervised and were prohibited. Following pretrial discovery, Dade County filed a motion for summary judgment which was granted in its favor. Joseph and his father appeal. We affirm.
A trespasser is a person who enters upon the premises of another without license, invitation or other right and intrudes for some definite purpose of his own or at his convenience or merely as an idler. 62 Am.J.ur.2d Premises Liability § 55 (1972); 23 Fla.Jur. Negligence § 54 (1959). The landowner’s duty to a trespasser is to refrain from inflicting wilful or wanton injury upon him and upon discovery of his presence to warn him of known dangers not open to ordinary observation. Wood v. Camp, 284 So. 2d 691, 693-94 (Fla.1973). There is no duty to warn a trespasser of a dangerous condition if he is already possessed of knowledge of that condition. Margrabe v. Graves, 97 So. 2d 498 (Fla. 1st DCA 1957).
Reviewing the facts presented in light of the above controlling principles of law, it is clear that Joseph Bovino entered as a trespasser upon the subject property which was not used for recreational purposes and not considered part of the public park located across the canal. It is also undisputed that Joseph was aware of the alleged dangerous condition that the premises were being used as a motorcycle racing track and his injury resulted from his own negligence and that of a third person, not as a result of a defective condition of the property. We conclude that the county owed no duty to Joseph. We have reviewed the following cases relied upon by appellants: Hix v. Billen, 284 So. 2d 209 (Fla.1973); Maldonado v. Jack M. Berry Grove Corp., 351 So. 2d 967 (Fla.1977); Heath v. First Baptist Church, 341 So. 2d 265 (Fla. 2nd DCA 1977), and Bucher v. Dade County, 354 So. 2d 89 (Fla. 3rd DCA 1978), and find they are factually distinguishable from the case at bar and, therefore, not applicable.
Accordingly, the summary final judgment is affirmed.
Affirmed.
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Marks v. Delcastillo, 386 So. 2d 1259 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980)…erior, the trailer’s exterior had just the opposite effect. The cases upon which the appellants rely, all of which involve dangerous conditions which were completely open to view, are thus entirely inapposite. Cf. Bovino v. Metropolitan Dade County, 378 So. 2d 50 (Fla.3d DCA 1979) (motorcycles in operation); Rice v. Florida Power & Light Co., 363 So. 2d 834 (Fla.3d DCA 1978), cert. denied, 373 So. 2d 460 (Fla.1979) (overhead power line); Libby v. West Coast Rock Co., Inc., supra (open mine pit). On this que…
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Gorin v. City OF ST. Augustine, 595 So. 2d 1062 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992)…s. Wood v. Camp, 284 So. 2d 691 (Fla. 1973). The duty owed to a trespasser is to avoid willful and wanton harm and upon discovery of his presence to warn him of known dangers not open to ordinary observation. Id.; Bovino v. Metropolitan Dade County, 378 So. 2d 50 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979). 2 We are aware Aventura held that the blending color of a sidewalk curb and driveway does not necessarily make the sidewalk curb and drop-off inherently dangerous. While we agree that blending colors alone might not create an in…
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Potts v. Johnson, 654 So. 2d 596 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995)…property. “A trespasser is one who enters upon the premises of another without license, invitation or other right, and intrudes for some definite purpose of his own, or at his convenience, or merely as an idler.” Bovino v. Metropolitan Dade County, 378 So. 2d 50, 51 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979). The record demonstrates that no one invited Potts on to the property, particularly the backyard, no one was home at the time Potts entered upon the property, and no one was aware that Potts was upon the property, thus Potts w…
Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Wood v. Camp, 284 So. 2d 691 (Fla. 1973)
- Maldonado v. Jack M. Berry Grove Corp., 351 So. 2d 967 (Fla. 1977)
- HIX v. Billen, 284 So. 2d 209 (Fla. 1973)
- Zelma Heath and Lawrence Heath v. First Baptist Church, 341 So. 2d 265 (Fla. 2d DCA 1977)
- Margrabe v. Graves, 97 So. 2d 498 (Fla. 1st DCA 1957)
- Joseph A. (Joey) Bucher v. Dade Cnty. & Cont'l Cas. Co., 354 So. 2d 89 (Fla. 3d DCA 1977)